COSATU condemns attacks on strikers 02-06-07

 

COSATU condemns attacks on strikers

The Congress of South African Trade Unions fully supports the decision of the public service trade union negotiators who have boycotted this morning's negotiations at the Public Sector Coordinated Bargaining Council in protest at the brutal attacks on striking workers. They were absolutely correct to register such a forceful protest.

COSATU condemns in the strongest terms the firing of rubber bullets at nurses outside the Addington Hospital, Durban, by police, and the arrest of 20 workers who were picketing at the hospital.

We send our best wishes to all the injured workers for a full recovery. We demand an immediate investigation to identify and discipline those responsible for ordering the shootings and we insist on the immediate, unconditional release of those arrested.

It is highly disturbing that these attacks follow the firing of stun grenades at demonstrators outside the Tygerberg Hospital in Cape Town, which COSATU condemned on Friday.

We shall be demanding an urgent meeting with the Minister of Safety and Security to find ways to prevent any more confrontations like these.

COSATU also deplores the government's threats to sack health workers who do not return to work. We fully endorse the view of Fikile Majola, General Secretary of NEHAWU, that "if government fires health workers, the negotiation process is not going to work".

The government should know that just dismissing workers in the middle of a strike means that you are actually compounding the problem. Attitudes will simply harden and in the end the real victim will be the system of collective bargaining itself.

The unions will defend the right of all workers to exercise their constitutional rights to strike, with the exception only of workers covered by an agreement on essential services. We shall vigorously oppose the government's moves to interdict broad categories of health workers from striking, including those whose work is clearly not essential.

The Central Executive Committee in session from 4-6 June 2007 will debate the strike and these worrying developments. We shall look at ways to ensure solidarity between the public- and private-sector based workers.

In the meantime we are calling on workers in the public sector to intensify the strike and to remain united in the face of the employers' intimidation and bullying antics.

Patrick Craven (National Spokesperson)

Congress of South African Trade Unions

1-5 Leyds Cnr Biccard Streets
Tel: +27 11 339-4911/24

Fax: +27 11 339-5080/6940/ 086 603 9667
Cell: 0828217456
E-Mail: patr...@cosatu.org.za